


Everything Works out in the End

by ventisoka



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Ahsoka Tano Needs a Hug, Ahsoka Tano-centric, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anakin Skywalker Needs a Hug, Angst, Canon Divergence - Battle of Mustafar, Family, Fix-It, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Post-Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Post-Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Sand people deserve rights, big brother anakin skywalker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:01:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24415576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ventisoka/pseuds/ventisoka
Summary: “Masters-!!” She called out to them as loud as her lungs would allow her to, “What are you doing!?”“Stay back, Ahsoka.” Anakin warned loudly. He didn’t even turn around to face her; just continued bashing his lightsaber ruthlessly at his old master. “You were right not to trust the Jedi. They’re taking over.”_____After the events on Mandalore, Ahsoka tries to reach out to Anakin- believing her former master can’t possibly be gone. Sensing his presence on the Mustafar system, she and Rex rush over there to find him. This changes everything.
Relationships: Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano, CT-7567 | Rex & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Padmé Amidala & Ahsoka Tano, Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 38
Kudos: 310





	1. Mustafar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **hello there!**
> 
> This plot has been lingering in the back of my mind for a while now, and I finally got the time to bring it to life.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the ride!

“Here we are.” Captain Rex spoke evenly as he piloted the small ship towards the landing dock.

Ahsoka and him had just been through what felt like a million times worse than hell after the Siege on Mandalore. Ahsoka could still see their fallen clone comrades when she closed her eyes. She didn’t want to think about it, and both her and Rex were trying to keep the event in the back of their mind. Burying the clones had been one of the hardest things they had ever had to do.

Before leaving that planet, Ahsoka had suddenly thought of Anakin- believing he couldn’t possibly be dead. She’d reached out using their force bond to try and find him, and the force had nudged her towards the Mustafar system. Rex and her had immediately set out there- desperately hoping that Anakin had survived Order 66.

Rex effortlessly landed their ship and as soon as they reached the ground, Ahsoka felt an overwhelming feeling of darkness. She had never felt anything like this before- even back on _that _planet after they had crashed. The presence of the dark was so strong here that she knew at once it had to be the Sith. What had happened? She felt a feeling of dread slowly building up... Anakin better be okay. She couldn’t lose him too. Not after everything that had already happened today.__

__Ahsoka was the first to climb out of the ship and Rex followed closely behind. The planet’s atmosphere was smoky and boiling hot- it couldn’t have been a bigger contrast to where she and Rex had just come from. Despite the overwhelming heat, she felt a shiver go down her spine. The force felt... unsettled here. Something was wrong. Something awful had just happened here._ _

__Rex must have noticed her unease, because he came and stood next to her and placed a steady hand on her shoulder. “It’s alright, Commander. I know General Skywalker will be alright. He’s too stubborn to let a Sith Lord get him.”_ _

__Ahsoka threw him a soft smile, she appreciated his attempts at reassuring her. It’s just that she wasn’t exactly afraid of a the Sith Lord getting Anakin... more afraid of him getting _to _him. What Maul had said to her back on Mandalore had been circling in the back of her mind.___ _

____Anakin would never embrace the darkness... would he...?_ _ _ _

____Now that she thought about it, he had back on Mortis. What if he did it again? She shook her head. She couldn’t think like that- she shouldn’t doubt Anakin. He could be impulsive, and sure he made bad decisions from time to time but he’d never give in to the dark side. He wasn’t like that. He was good._ _ _ _

____...Right?_ _ _ _

____Ahsoka and Rex made their way further through the planet and that’s when she spotted two more ships not far away. The first she immediately recognised as Anakin’s tiny starfighter, but the other one... she definitely recognised it but she couldn’t remember who it belonged to exactly._ _ _ _

____“That’s Senator Amidala’s ship,” Rex nodded towards the ship. Ah, that was why Ahsoka recognised it. “What’s she doing here?”_ _ _ _

____“I’m as lost as you are, Rex,” Ahsoka sighed, “but I know one thing for sure, if she’s here then Master- ah, Anakin, can’t be far away.”_ _ _ _

____A slight, almost fond smile appeared on the Clone’s face, “You’re right about that, Commander. C’mon, let’s go make sure they’re alright.”_ _ _ _

____They were halfway to Padmé’s ship when something crashed into Ahsoka’s leg. She darted back, only to realise that it was Artoo Detoo._ _ _ _

____“Artooy!” She greeted; it was such a relief to see a familiar friendly face- even if it was a droid- after what had just happened. “Buddy, what’s going on? Where’s Anakin?”_ _ _ _

____Artoo didn’t say anything, instead it beeped at them, telling them to follow it to the Senator’s ship. Ahsoka shot Rex a puzzled glance which he only returned. It wasn’t like Anakin’s little droid to be so quiet. This only confirmed their fear that something bad had indeed happened; and not knowing what it was only made Ahsoka’s dread grow._ _ _ _

____Cautiously, they followed the droid on board the ship and as they climbed up the boarding ramp they were met by none other than Threepio._ _ _ _

____“Oh! Captain Rex! And Commander Tano, too!” The droid greeted them in his usual slightly over-the-top style. “It’s such a relief that you’re here, Artoo and I could desperately use your help.”_ _ _ _

____Something terrible had happened then. Ahsoka felt her heartbeat speed up, “Threepio, what’s going on?” She asked as calmly as she could. Rex being next to her helped calm her slightly, but her worry was only building._ _ _ _

____“It’s mistress Padmé,” the droid said lowly, “Oh dear, I fear she won’t make it. I carried her onto the ship but she is barely breathing.”_ _ _ _

____“Padmé’s hurt-?” Ahsoka frowned, if she was attacked that would explain Anakin’s absence; he wouldn’t let anyone hurt her and get away with it. But still, something didn’t seem right about this; there were still pieces to this puzzle that she didn’t have._ _ _ _

____“Where is she, Threepio?” Rex asked, his calm, soldier-like exterior making him seem uneffected by the news- but Ahsoka could tell he was worried too. After fighting by his side for years she’d learnt how to read him, how to see through the walls he built up._ _ _ _

____“Of course, right this way.” Threepio spoke, as formally as ever as he lead them through the ship and into the main room. There, they saw Padmé who had been laid down on the floor of the ship. Her skin was pale and she lay on her side; her body seeming to crumple into itself._ _ _ _

____Ahsoka couldn’t help the audible gasp that slipped out of her lips. Never had she ever seen Padmé look so... vulnerable. Back when she was still in the Order she’d gotten to know her quite well, and to Ahsoka she had always seemed almost larger than life. She was always surrounded by grace and beauty and no matter what happened she never failed to find a way out and stay optimistic and proud- no matter how bleak things seemed. But now... now she just looked broken. No wonder Anakin wasn’t here. Whoever had hurt Padmé like this deserved to pay._ _ _ _

____Ahsoka rushed to Padmé’s side and placed a hand onto her neck, checking for a pulse. Worry filled her when she realised with a start that Padmé had done everything she could to help Ahsoka and she’d never even properly thanked her. Ahsoka had missed her, she couldn’t bear to even imagine losing her, too. Eventually she felt a heartbeat- it was faint, but it was there. She gave a sigh of relief, she couldn’t lose anyone else. Not today - not ever._ _ _ _

____The worry she felt at seeing Padmé’s body slowly changed into anger. Whoever had done this... she wouldn’t let them get away with it. “How did this happen, Threepio?” She asked lowly, ignoring how lumpy her voice felt._ _ _ _

____“Ah, well I’m not entirely sure as neither Artoo or I saw anything.” Threepio said sadly. “Master Ani and Master Kenobi have disappeared.” Obi-wan was here too? Ahsoka felt a little more relieved- Both her masters had survived whatever happened with the clones. She wondered if their clones had been forced to turn against them too... or maybe it was just the half of 501st that was with her? She shook her head, feeling her mind wander. She’d worry later, now they needed her help._ _ _ _

____Even though he was a droid, Ahsoka could tell that Threepio felt bad for not being able to save Padmé. She stood up, giving Threepio a gentle smile to try and reassure him. “Don’t worry, Threepio. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”_ _ _ _

____She turned to leave, a hand on top of her lightsaber. She had dropped the other one at some point after the Siege and had come close to leaving this one behind as well; but the force had almost urged her not to. And she was glad she listened, because by the looks of things she was going to be fighting a Sith Lord soon. She definitely preferred fighting with two sabers- they allowed her to maintain a more aggressive fighting style. But she could still fight with one- and if Anakin was there fighting with her, she’d definitely be alright. He’d always said that he’d never let anyone hurt her, and Ahsoka trusted her old master with her life._ _ _ _

____“Commander, where are you going?” Rex asked as she reached the door._ _ _ _

____“I’m going to find Anakin and help him take down this Sith once and for all.” She answered as decisively as she could. “You stay here and watch over the senator- we’ll be back here before you know it.”_ _ _ _

____“Are you sure? I don’t mean to undermine you or anything, Commander, but this Sith Lord seems _dangerous, _you saw what he did to Senator Amidala.”___ _ _ _

______“Don’t worry, Rex.” Ahsoka smiled reassuringly at the clone captain. “Anakin and Obi-Wan are already there, I bet you they’ve taken care of him already!” Sith Lords are their speciality after all._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Alright then.” Rex nodded, but she could tell he was still uncertain about this. “Just be careful, if you’re gone for too long I’m coming after you.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Ahsoka nodded. Rex had always been a good, loyal soldier. He was worried for her, but she knew she’d be alright; he wasn’t getting rid of her that easily. Turning back around to the door, Ahsoka broke into a sprint down the ships ramp and tried to use her force bond with her old master to try and track him down once more._ _ _ _ _ _

______Their bond was definitely stronger now that they were closer. She wondered if he could feel her approaching. The feeling of darkness she’d felt before seemed to radiate even more strongly out of his side of the bond; it must be because he’s fighting the Sith Lord, Ahsoka realised. She had to find him fast. His force signature seemed to be coming from a building not far in the distance. She grabbed her lightsaber from her belt and started running as fast as she could towards it. ‘Hang on, master! I’m on my way’_ _ _ _ _ _

______She may no longer be a Jedi, but she would help them take down this Sith Lord as well as she could; in fact, maybe... it would be just like old times._ _ _ _ _ _

______A faint smile appeared on her face, she only hoped they hadn’t had all the fun without her._ _ _ _ _ _

______====== ====== ====== ======_ _ _ _ _ _

______The tall building sat near the edge of the tall cliffs, which dropped steeply down into the menacing lava below. As soon as Ahsoka entered the massive room, she instantly felt the strong, lingering taste of death. It was almost suffocating. She made her way through the room and suddenly recoiled when she realised _why _the presence of death was so strong here.___ _ _ _ _ _

________On the floor, lay about a dozen dead bodies- looking a little closer she recognised one of them as Nute Gunray; these dead bodies belonged to the Separatist leaders._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________What happened...?_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Against her better judgement, she slowly knelt down next to one of the bodies to try and deduce the cause of death. The lightsaber wounds on the body she looked at were bold and prominent. So a force user had definitely done this._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Ahsoka felt nauseous- the Sith Lord must have done this; nobody else could have massacred so many without a second thought. This Sith must have been even more heartless and dangerous than she had first imagined; she had to get to Anakin and Obi-wan _now. _____ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Her force bond with Anakin seemed to be nudging her to head out of the building through the door on the opposite side of the room. She dashed as fast as she could in that direction and made her way into the long platform on the building’s exterior. She could hear the sound of lightsabers aggressively crashing nearby- she’d found them! Obi-Wan and Anakin must be still taking on the Sith Lord, she realised. Her grip on her own lightsaber tightened as she rushed down the platform and around the corner to join the battle._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________What she saw nearly made her scream in pure shock. Because there was no Sith Lord. Anakin and Obi-Wan were fighting... each other? But why?_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Ahsoka’s mind started going crazy. This must be some sort of Sith trick... her masters would never do anything like this. And yet the way they were fighting; it was intense and they were both showing no signs of hesitation._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________It looked like they were trying to kill each other._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Her mind flashed back to what Maul had said to her about Anakin back on Mandalore; but there was no way Anakin would ever turn, right? What was going on in front of her seemed to say otherwise, but she refused to believe it. This had to be some sort of trick. This couldn’t be real. It couldn’t._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________The two Jedi were so engaged in their duel that neither even noticed her lingering behind them. Anakin was clearly the most aggressive in this fight, and as he pushed Obi-wan further and further back towards the edge of the platform, Ahsoka realised that if she was going to act, she’d have to do it soon._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Masters-!!” She called out to them as loud as her lungs would allow her to, “What are you doing!?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Stay back, Ahsoka.” Anakin warned loudly. He didn’t even turn around to face her; just continued bashing his lightsaber ruthlessly at his old master. “You were right not to trust the Jedi. They’re taking over.” He called darkly as he managed to land a hit on Obi-Wan who grunted in pain as a result._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Ugh- Ahsoka, Anakin has turned to the darkside.” Obi-Wan said as he blocked hit after hit with his blue saber. “He needs to be stopped now before-“_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Don’t you dare try and turn her against me, too-!!” Anakin yelled, full of hatred as he launched into an even more aggressive attack. Ahsoka noticed in terror that the were even closer to the edge of the platform. She needed them to stop- whatever this was- it was quickly getting out of hand. “Ahsoka- help me take him down-!” Anakin called out to her sharply._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“No!! Stop it, both of you!!” Ahsoka begun to run towards of them, but suddenly she felt the air knocked out of her as from in front of her, Anakin used the force to knock her back. She landed roughly on the ground behind them, hitting her head harshly against the building’s wall._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She rubbed her head in shock- that was definitely going to bruise- forced to watch helplessly as the two Jedi continued to fight, getting closer to the edge of the platform with every passing second. This fight was only getting more dangerous. She knew both of them were incredible duellists... she’d just never imagined anything like this would be able to happen._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________How had this even happened? The last time she’d seen both of them together they seemed just like their usual selves. There hardly seemed to be any sort of hatred or anger between them. Her mind flashed back to Mortis, Anakin had been forced to turn then; what if this Sith Lord had caused this? Her eyes widened as she realised they could both be under his control. It was up to Ahsoka to stop them, before somebody ended up getting seriously hurt... or even worse, dying._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She had to stop them. She couldn’t let this go on._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Nobody else was dying today. Not if Ahsoka Tano had anything to say about it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She could do this. Everything was going to be alright. She’d do it for Jesse- for every single clone that had been taken from the world far too soon because of this Sith Lord. Things we’re going to get better. They had to._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Carefully, while still leaning against the wall of the building, Ahsoka managed to stand up. She was a little wobbly and her balance was unsteady, but slowly she made it up. If Anakin and Obi-Wan weren’t going to listen to her, then she’d just have to find another way to get them to stop fighting._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Using the force to grab their weapons or force them to turn off would be far too risky and would almost definitely not work. It would also be a bad idea to dive in and start attacking them; they could both overpower her, and though she knew it was unlikely that they’d fight her, she was still sore from Anakin’s force shove. She had to think of something fast._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Without thinking, Ahsoka used the force to dislodge one of the beams on the edge of the platform and swiftly knocked out both of the fighting Jedi._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________They were so focused on their duel to the death that they didn’t even see it coming._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Oh, Kriff-“ she muttered as she rushed to her fallen masters. Knocking them out maybe wasn’t the brightest idea, but at least they stopped attacking each other. “What were you two doing?” She whispered. Checking their pulses, she was relieved to see that they were both perfectly fine. They’d wake up in a few hours, and then, finally, everything would be okay again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Ahsoka knew deep inside that that wasn’t true at all; but if she kept telling herself things would be alright, maybe they would be for a change. She could always hope._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She resolved that she needed to bring them both back to Padmé and Rex as soon as possible. Using the force, she shakily levitated both unconscious bodies off the ground._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________And then she dropped both of them as she collapsed on the ground herself._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Sighing, she realised that getting them back to the ship wasn’t exactly a one person job. She couldn’t carry them both herself- she hadn’t eaten since Mandalore; not to mention she was still a little wobbly on her legs after what Anakin had done. _Thanks a lot, Master. _She frowned, at least Rex could help. But he wasn’t going to like this any more than she did.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Whipping out her com, she asked Rex to come over. He was there in less than a minute._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Commander, what’s going... on...?” Rex looked at the two Jedi’s bodies in confusion and worry, “Uh, are they alright?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“More or less.” Sighed Ahsoka. “I could use some help getting them back to the ship. Can you take Master Kenobi?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Of course.” Nodded the clone, as he seemingly effortlessly scooped the fallen Jedi Master off the ground._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________They made their way back to the ship in silence, and upon arrival Threepio quickly rushed over to them in panic. “Oh goodness! This day just keeps getting worse and worse!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Tell me about it.” Frowned Rex as he laid Obi-wan’s body on the ground just across from where Ahsoka had placed Anakin’s. “The Sith Lord?” He asked her quietly, meeting her eyes as they crouched next to their friends collapsed bodies._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“I don’t know...” Ahsoka rubbed her tired eyes with her hands. “When I got there they were fighting each other. I don’t know what happened, Rex...” Obi-Wan said Anakin turned to the darkside. Anakin hurt me. Nothing feels right. I’m scared._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“It’s alright, Commander,” Rex tried to smile at her softly as he placed a gentle, uncertain hand on the young Togruta’s shoulder; but his voice sounded hollow. “We’ll figure this all out, as you said. We’ll get through whatever this is.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Ahsoka wanted to believe him, but things only seemed to be going wrong today. It didn’t seem like they’d be able to get though this at all. This really had been the worst day imaginable for both of them._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________She tried to throw him a reassuring smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She needed to focus on the task at hand. “We need to get off this planet before we decide to do anything else.” She decided. “Padmé needs to be brought to safety, but somehow I don’t think going to Coruscant is the brightest idea.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“Agreed. But that doesn’t exactly leave us with many safe places to take her.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“We could seek out some of the other Jedi, but I’m scared that not many survived.” Ashoka said quietly. Plus, Anakin and Obi-Wan had been fighting... and after what Maul had said about Anakin... it didn’t seem like the best option to search for other survivors just yet._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“And what happens when they wake up-?” Ahsoka realised suddenly, “Rex, something’s happened to Anakin- he’s not... right... and Master Kenobi said something when they were fighting and... I don’t think we should keep them together.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“You’re right...” Rex said lowly, “The two of us might not be able to stop them if they launch into another duel like that.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Ahsoka thought for a moment, hoping desperately for a solution to present itself. She went though as many solutions in her head as she possibly could... she didn’t come up with many. “We need to keep them separated.” She said finally, “If I can talk to Anakin alone, maybe I can knock some sense into him.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________But Rex didn’t seem entirely convinced, “I- I trust the General with my entire life but- things have been so strange lately, I don’t.. what if something happens to you-?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Ahsoka looked into her long time friend’s eyes with a gentle gaze, “Rex, don’t worry. We’ll be alright. Anakin won’t ever hurt me, I know that.” Rex didn’t need to know that Anakin _had _hurt her, and that she was terrified out of her mind that he might try and do it again. She just had to stay calm and trust in Anakin, and trust in the force. Everything would work out. Everything would be fine.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Rex seemed unsure, and he held her gaze for a while, as if trying to read her; trying to will her to change her mind. After a moment, the clone captain sighed before eventually nodding. “Alright. I don’t know if I’m happy about this, but I’ll trust your judgement, Commander.” He glanced at Padmé’s still body. “I’ll get the senator somewhere safe. General Kenobi might know what to do so I’ll keep in touch with you so you know where we are.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Right.” Ahsoka nodded, she placed a cold hand on top of one of Rex’s to reassure him. “Don’t worry about me, alright? I’ll be fine. I’m going to talk to Anakin and then we’ll come find you, alright?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Rex smiled a little, “Seems like we’ve got ourselves a plan then.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Seems like it.” Ahsoka slowly stood up. “Look after yourself, alright, Rex? I’ll see you real soon.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“You too, Commander,” Rex gestured to her comlink, “Keep in touch, alright? As soon as anything happens if things seem like they’re about to go south; or even if you just want to talk; let me know.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Ahsoka nodded, knowing that he’d do the same. Before she turned around to leave, she suddenly remembered that she still had Obi-Wan and Anakin’s sabers. Whipping them out of her utility belt, she held them over to Rex who looked at her in slight confusion._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“I think these would be safer with you, Rex.” She said quietly. “Just in case anything happens, I want you to have them.” The last thing she wanted was to end up having a lightsaber duel with her old master after all. Anakin probably wouldn’t be delighted when he found out that she didn’t have his lightsaber, but it seemed like a much safer idea._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Rex nodded, as he took the two lightsabers and placed them safely around his own belt._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Smiling once more at her close friend, Ahsoka turned back around to Anakin’s body and carefully lifted him up into her arms. “C’mon Artooy,” she called to the blue astromech who was hanging around near Threepio next to the Senator. “Let’s get out of here, buddy.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________The droid buzzed a little and then rolled over to her. She heard Threepio fussing over him from behind her, “Oh do be careful Artoo.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Ahsoka and Artoo brought Anakin out of Padmé’s ship and into the little one that she and Rex had flown to this gordforesaken planet. Once settled into the cockpit, with Anakin next to her, Ahsoka carefully manuvered the ship into the air above them._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________From below her, she could see Rex standing watching them take off. The clone met her eyes and saluted to her. Ahsoka felt the first real smile in what felt like forever appear on her face. Rex was a good man. She was going to miss him; but with any luck she’d be able to meet up with him sooner rather than later._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________She glanced at Anakin’s body next to her as she piloted the ship out of the atmosphere. She’d never realised just how tired he looked- the bags under his eyes seemed to stand out even more in this tiny ship. She wondered when the last time he’d had a full night’s sleep was._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________She really hoped that they could sort this mess out._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________They had to. It felt as if the fate of the galaxy was resting on her shoulders._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise you it gets better.
> 
> I just need to drag our favourite characters through hell and back first :)


	2. Anakin and Ahsoka

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin and Ahsoka have a long overdue conversation...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to quickly say thank you all for the overwhelming support I’ve had on this story! I never thought any one would really read this, but here we are with over 100 kudos and over 1000 hits! That’s absolutely insane! :) I know this isn’t about the numbers, but it really means a lot and I hope you know I appreciate every single one of you. <33

The endless void of space seemed more cold and mysterious than usual as Ahsoka piloted the small shuttle away from the Mustafar system. They’d taken off without really coming up with a plan- any idea where to go, but the Togruta tried her hardest not to let that bother her.

Back when she was Anakin’s Padawan, he’d often charged blindly into things without really thinking them through, and she eagerly followed. However, this time she was the one in charge. This time, Anakin wasn’t himself.

But it would be okay. She would bring him back. She had to.

“Where should we go..?” She wondered aloud.

Artoo gave a few short beeps in response, suggesting that it had no idea either. Anakin’s loyal droid companion was on the outside of the ship keeping an eye out for any unwanted company that they might run into. Ahsoka hoped that when Anakin woke up, maybe seeing his droid could help knock a little sense into him. She hoped.

So far, they hadn’t come across a single other ship since leaving Mustafar. It was strange for space to be so desolate... but then, things had been really strange lately. In fact, strange was an understatement.

Ahsoka’s mind flashed to Jesse and the clones- the way their bodies had looked, lying lifeless on the cold surface of that _kriffing_ moon.

No. She wasn’t going to think about that.

_I am one with the force, the force is with me._

Ahsoka closed her eyes for a moment, trying to build up a sense of serenity. She had to trust that the force would guide her. If she believed, maybe everything would end the way she hoped it would.

Now, she would focus on the task at hand. It was up to her to save her master. She would do whatever it would take. The Anakin she saw on Mustafar wasn’t the one who had wished her luck before Mandalore. The Anakin she knew had to be in there somewhere- she would bring him back and this whole nightmare would finally be over.

She considered heading for Coruscant- maybe the Jedi temple would be a safe place; but she quickly decided against it. Coruscant was crawling with clones, and if what Rex had said about every single one of them being given order 66 was true... well, heading to Coruscant would be more than foolish. She and Anakin would likely be killed before they even landed. A shiver went down her spine accompanied with a strong feeling of dread. All the Jedi in the temple... she hoped at least some of them had survived... the Padawans... the younglings... it made her feel sick just thinking about it. The clones wouldn’t have killed the younglings... would they?

She quickly stopped her thoughts from wandering any further; trying to think of other planets. This was important. She needed to get them somewhere safe. For Anakin.

Rex had commed her not long ago, saying he had decided to head to Polis Messa, a small system in the outer rim. He’d said something about a message from Bail Organa, asking any remaining Jedi to head there. They didn’t know who else had survived, but he’d said that he’d keep in touch.

Ahsoka wanted to stay as far away from there as possible for the time being. When Anakin woke up there was no telling _what_ he would do, so to be safe she wanted to keep him and obi-wan as far apart as possible.

Eventually, she decided to fly the ship to the planet Yavin. It was orbited by several moons and seemed like a good hiding place- and more importantly, as far as she knew it didn’t have a massive population so it was a quiet place where she could talk some sense into Anakin alone.

They were well on their way to the distant planet, when Artoo started beeping frantically.

“Artoo, what’s wrong?”

The droid beeped a little more and Ahsoka felt panic rise up inside her. The fuel they had left had reached critical levels. They hadn’t checked the fuel on the ship before leaving Mustafar. 

Looks like they weren’t going to make it to Yavin after all. Ahsoka sighed before carefully manoeuvring the slowing ship down towards the closest planet. This was possibly the worst possible time to be crashing on an unknown planet without any way of getting off it, but she decided that she wasn’t going to let herself worry about that right now. Now, she had to make sure they landed as safely as possible and didn’t end up dying.

She couldn’t leave Rex on his own out there. She made a promise that she’d come back to him, and she intended to keep it.

Luckily, as a side effect of being Anakin’s Padawan, Ahsoka had experienced more than her fair share of sudden crash landings. Carefully, she brought the ship in towards the nearest planet and harshly pulled on the breaks. The ship skidded across the ground and for a moment Ahsoka felt like she’d doomed them all, but slowly it came to a stop. 

Breathless, she climbed out of the ship onto the ground below them. They’d landed on a desert planet. Great, Anakin would be absolutely _thrilled_ when he woke up. Ahsoka helped Artoo out of the front of the ship and gave it a sheepish grin. “At least we’re all in one piece.”

The droid bleeped at her as it rolled onto the course sand. Artoo didn’t seem to like it here either, but hopefully they’d be able to get somewhere else as soon as possible. 

“Any idea what planet this is?” She asked the droid as she looked out across the horizon. They didn’t seem to be close to any sort of civilisation whatsoever, and the heat beating down on them was almost excruciating. 

The droid connected to its navigators, beeping something about them being on Tatooine.

Well that wasn’t ideal at all, but it could be worse, the Togruta supposed. At least it wasn’t Geonosis- or force forbid, Felucia.

She decided that the best thing to do would be to wait for Anakin to wake up. She just hoped that would happen sooner rather than later. As much as she was dreading the inevitable conversation with him, she couldn’t exactly drag her former master’s body through a desert.

She had been trying so hard to stay as optimistic and full of hope as possible, but then, deserted in the middle of Tatooine next to a crashed ship; Ahsoka felt her hope begin to run out. Her knees buckled and she collapsed on the rough sand.

She sighed, pulling her knees up against her head as she leant into her arms. “What are we going to do, Artooy..?” Everything just seemed like it was getting more and more hopeless. She wondered if it would ever end, because at the moment it just seemed like the world was watching and laughing as everything around her just got worse and worse. 

Artoo beeped a little in response and moved across the sand towards her- an attempt at offering her some sort of comfort. Ahsoka gratefully accepted the droid’s comfort; she sat up, wrapping her lithe arms loosely around the astromech’s dome as she closed her eyes. She hadn’t realised how tired she’d become. Come to think of it, she hadn’t slept at all since before Mandalore. But then, so much was happening and how could she sleep at all when-

A faint shuffling noise from the ship behind them quickly shook her out of her thoughts. She probably wouldn’t have even heard it if it weren’t for her sensitive hearing.

She stood up in one swift motion, keeping a hand on top of her lightsaber in case whatever made this noise was a threat. She made her way over to the ship as stealthily as she could, prepared to fight if she had to.

Her heart stopped a little when she realised what had actually made the noise- or rather, _who_ had made the noise. Because they weren’t being attacked- 

Anakin was waking up.

She suddenly felt overwhelmingly guilty and full of dread. She had no idea what her old master was going to do- how he was going to react to seeing her here after what had just happened on Mustafar. She could only hope that he wouldn’t be too upset- it was Anakin, she’d be alright. 

Right?

But then after the way she’d seen him fighting Obi-Wan she couldn’t exactly be sure of that, could she? Anakin and Obi-Wan had what seemed like an unbreakable bond, but the way they’d been fighting on Mustafar seemed to suggest otherwise. But then... this was _Anakin._ The same Anakin who had said that he’d never let anyone hurt her.

Ahsoka gently patted Artoo’s dome once more; the droid had followed her back towards the ship, before she carefully walked over to Anakin who was moving into a sitting position on the sand.

“...where..? ..what..?” He muttered as he looked around the place in confusion. Eventually, Anakin looked up and noticed her watching him cautiously. “Ahsoka-? What happened-? Why are you here? What _happened?_ ” He seemed completely full of confusion and Ahsoka couldn’t help but feel bad for him. Nobody had expected things to happen the way they had.

“We’re on Tatooine.” She said evenly as she looked out around the seemingly infinite sea of sand that surrounded them. “We kinda ran out of fuel, so for the time being I guess we’re stuck here.”

Ahsoka noticed his frown at the name of the planet, but he didn’t say anything else as he got up from the sand and came to stand in front of her. He still towered over her- even though she had grown a little in the time since she’d left the order. Anakin always seemed larger than life- but despite that she could tell just how tired he looked. When was the last time he’d had a full nights sleep? It didn’t look like he’d slept a wink in weeks... and that was probably true.

“It’s just us here?” He asked eventually. The atmosphere had become so tense between them that it could have been sliced effortlessly. Ahsoka wondered when things had changed between them so drastically- how they went from being inseparable to practically strangers overnight. 

She nodded, her hands folded in front of her.

“Where is Padmé?” He asked suddenly, “Is she safe?” She could feel his panic radiating harshly through their bond. He never was good at hiding his emotions- especially when he was worried, stressed or angry.

“She’s alright.” She answered as calmly as she could, “Rex is bringing her somewhere safe.” 

Unfortunately, her attempt at reassuring him didn’t seem to ease his worry at all. In fact, it only seemed to make him more upset. 

_”Where?”_ He pressed. “Why isn’t she with me-?” He was starting to get worked up. Ahsoka realised she had to navigate through this as carefully as possible.

“Master. I promise you she’s safe. Rex will get her medical attention.”

“That’s not what I’m asking, Ahsoka.” He said lowly, his voice in that warning tone he only used when she’d screwed up big time. Ahsoka could practically see the stress.. the anger building up inside of him. He was like a ticking time bomb. “Why is she not with me-?” He was glaring coldly at her now. This was the polar opposite of the way he had been the last time they had properly spoken- back before the Siege. Something had definitely happened to him. This wasn’t Anakin. “Why are we stranded on kriffing Tatooine when she’s going to die!?”

“She’s not going to die, Rex will-“

“No!!” This wasn’t the Anakin she had wished good luck to before the Siege. This was someone else- the same person that she’d seen fighting Master Kenobi on Mustafar. The person Maul had warned her about. Someone dangerous. This wasn’t Anakin. “Only my new Master can- only _I_ can save her! I’ve seen her dying- it’s going to be all your fault-!” He was standing so close to her that she could feel his rage; it was almost suffocating. She’d never imagined that she’d be on the receiving end of his anger, but this was Anakin... he wouldn’t hurt her... right? She just had to stand her ground.

“What are you talking about? Your new Master?” She spoke as evenly as she could, hoping he wouldn’t notice the way her voice wobbled slightly as she spoke. He probably wouldn’t. His anger was blinding him. “This isn’t you, Anakin- you’re not like this! I know you!” Her comlink started beeping, but she quickly turned it off. This was important. She felt bad for ignoring Rex, but she knew he’d understand. She’d talk to him later.

“How can you say you know me when you left me, Ahsoka? You turned your back on me without a second thought!”

“Anakin, that’s not fair. I made a choice- you know I couldn’t stay! You had no right to stop me-!”

He shook his head at her, “You left me when I needed you the most.” He said coldly, “And now because of you and your selfish decisions I have no idea where she is when I need to save her!Why couldn’t you have just stayed out of this?”

She tried to ignore the way his words stung. The way it hurt Ahsoka a lot more than she cared to admit, he couldn’t really mean this- it was his anger talking, not Anakin. But this wasn’t how she thought this conversation would go at all. She was running out of things to say. She couldn’t lose him.. not after she had lost so much already. And the clones... this was a nightmare and it just kept getting worse and worse every second that passed. 

“Wake up, master. You need to snap out of it.”

His expression only remained the same. “You’re supposed to be with me, but you’ve turned against me too.”

“I haven’t turned against you, Anakin. I’ve always been by your side; right from the very beginning.” And until the very end.

“Then why did you try to take me away from Padmé? She needs me now, and you’ve only put her in danger.”

“For Kriff’s sake, Master!” She didn’t mean to snap at him, but she too was losing patience with this argument. “Padmé is with Rex and Obi-wan. She couldn’t be in safer hands!” She had hoped that would reassure him a little- at least the part about Padmé being safe, but if anything it only seemed to cause the suspicion on his face to grow. She realised too late that bringing up master Kenobi was a fatal mistake.

“What-?” His voice seemed to have a sharp edge to it, as he moved closer to her in an almost confrontational way, “Why is Kenobi with her?” Anakin hissed his old master’s name, “He’s not to be trusted; you _saw_ him on Mustafar, Ahsoka! He intended to kill me-!”

Ahsoka’s eyes narrowed, “Really? Or were you just trying to kill him?”

Anakin _growled_ “You’re siding with him! I thought you knew better than to trust the Jedi, but I see I was wrong.” He scowled at her, but Ahsoka refused to flinch. She held her ground. She’d get behind whatever this was.

“What are you even talking about? What did the Jedi do that suddenly made them so evil?”

“They plan on taking over- I was blind not to have seen it!”

She had to physically stop her eyes from rolling. “You don’t really believe that, do you?”

“What I don’t believe is that you’re defending them!”

“Anakin-“ bickering wasn’t going to get them anywhere, Ahsoka tried to steer the conversation in a different direction. “What exactly happened on Mustafar?”

He glared, his own arms folding mirroring her’s. “Nothing that concerns you.” He pointed an accusing finger at her, “You had no right to barge in and stop me from defeating that traitor!” He spat, “And now because of you, we’re stranded on the worst planet in the entire kriffing galaxy!”

She frowned at him, “You’re being dramatic. It’s not that bad.” It wasn’t the nicest planet she’d ever been to by a long shot; but it was far from the worst place they could be stranded.

“You don’t know anything-!” He almost yelled at her before swiftly turning around and striding off.

“Where are you going-!?” She called out to him- as if he even knew. He may as well have just been marching off in a random direction, blinded by complete rage.

“To find a way off this shithole!”

“Well I’m coming with you!” She yelled after him as he walked further and further away from her. “C’mon Artoo.” She turned to the blue droid who’d been lurking timidly not far behind them, “We’d better catch up with him before he gets himself killed.” Artoo gave a few short beeps in agreement, as they sped across the desert after Anakin.

...

They had been walking through the seemingly endless desert- with Anakin a good few paces ahead of Ahsoka and Artoo- in a cold silence for what felt like centuries when Ahsoka finally decided to try and break the awkward tension between them.

“Remember when the three of us got lost in the middle of the desert back at the start of the war?” Things had seemed a lot simpler back then. She almost wished she could go back to those times, back when she’d been a naïve child, unaware of how messed up and corrupt the world really could be.

Anakin didn’t reply, but after a moment of more awkward silence, he did eventually speak up. “Why are you even coming with me?”

How did he expect her to respond to that? “So you don’t end up getting yourself killed..?” 

When he turned to look at her in annoyance, she could tell her attempt at lightening the atmosphere a little had failed. “How do you know I won’t try to kill you?”

“I don’t think you would. I know you.” She spoke confidently, trying to hide the fact that she was afraid she barely knew him anymore. How he was almost like a different person.

Anakin stopped walking as he frowned at her. “You saw me on Mustafar.” He said, his expression unreadable as he turned away from her. “I could attack you, Ahsoka. Just like I did with Kenobi.”

“But you won’t.” She said defiantly as she stood behind his tall frame.

“You don’t know that-!!” He snapped harshly, his annoyance spilling through their bond. He never was good at hiding his emotions. Ahsoka pretended that his sudden outburst hadn’t scared her. “You would have been far wiser to just leave me on Mustafar.”

“I won’t leave you, Anakin.” 

“Why were you even there?” He asked sharply. “You were supposed to be on Mandalore.” 

She felt sadness rising up inside of her as she remembered searching desperately through their bond for some trace of Anakin- believing desparatly that he couldn’t possibly be dead. “I was worried.” She answered honestly, bowing her head down afraid to meet his eyes. “The clones... something happened and- I was afraid..” she paused, feeling her voice waver slightly. “.. I could barely feel you in the force. I thought-“ she felt tears forming in her eyes, “I thought you were gone, master.”

He stood in front of her in silence, not even turning to face her.

Maybe the Anakin she knew really was gone. He was just going to walk away now, and leave her crying hopelessly in the middle of the desert. She’d been a fool to believe otherwise. After the way he’d yelled at her- refused to listen to her... maybe the Anakin she’d known before was just a distant memory.

She choked back a sob. She was going to lose him too.

But he didn’t walk away, and suddenly she felt two strong arms wrap gently around her as Anakin enveloped her into a warm hug.

That was when the tears she’d been holding back started flowing. She leaned into his embrace, her petite frame shaking against the body of her former master.

“I needed to know you weren’t dead.” She choked before practically drowning in her own tears.

He didn’t say anything for a while, which she was grateful for. She doubted she’d be able to say anything back with the way she was sobbing violently. He rubbed the back of her head gently, trying to soothe her.

They stayed like that for a while, blocking out everything around them. Their fight- the bitter words they’d yelled at each other was like a distant memory. Ahsoka realised just how much she’d missed her old master- how much his comfort helped her. He was an older brother to her, and she’d forgotten just how much she needed him.

“I would never just leave you like that.” He said gently. 

“But- the clones, they all just-“

“I’m so sorry, my Padawan.” She realised that he’d started crying too when she felt his tears dripping down the back of her head. “I should have been there.”

“It’s not your fault.” She managed, her voice felt hoarse and weak. “They were being controlled- me and Rex tried to help them but we-“ she trailed off, “..we couldn’t save them.”

After she’d managed to calm down a little, she heard him whisper “I’m sorry” into the curve between her montrals. “I should never have let that happen to you, Ahsoka. I can’t imagine what you had to go through.” He whispered gently.

“They were part of something bigger than we could have known. But Rex and I- we buried them. We tried to give them the goodbye they deserved.” She whispered into his robe.

They held onto each other in comforting silence for a while. Ahsoka never wanted to let go. This was the Anakin she knew- he was finally back. This was the Anakin who was an older brother to her- the Anakin she loved to the ends of the galaxy and back.

After a moment, he pulled back to look at her face. “I’m so proud of you.” He told her softly, “You’re a better person than I could ever hope to be.”

“That’s not true, master.” She said wholeheartedly. “You’re one of the most selfless, kindest people I’ve ever known.”

She felt his body tense up, but she kept holding onto him. “You shouldn’t say that. I’ve done awful things. You shouldn’t- you wouldn’t forgive me if you knew-“

She cut him off gently, “Whatever you’ve done, master, I could never hate you.” She looked up at his tear stained face, “I know you didn’t mean the things you’ve done. You were being- it wasn’t you, alright?”

“I just-“ his mind seemed preoccupied; he was full of guilt, and definitely worried about something. 

Ahsoka offered him a reassuring look, “It’s alright Anakin, I promise. Whatever’s happened, we can fix it.”

“I don’t know what came over me Ahsoka, I just- _snapped._ ” 

“It’ll be okay.” Ahsoka tried to smile at him as she offered as much reassurance and comfort as she could through their bond. This was definitely the Anakin she knew- the Anakin that seemed to care for the people he loved more than anything else, the Anakin who was impulsive and intense at times... but had a big heart. “And- I know you’re worried about Senator Amidala, I promise you won’t lose her, master. She couldn’t be in better hands.” Rex would make sure she got whatever treatment she needed. She would trust him with her life, and by the look on his face- Anakin trusted Rex with his life too.

Anakin rubbed a tired hand through his hair. “Ahsoka, there’s something you should know; about Padmé. She’s-“

“I know.” This time, Ahsoka managed a real smile. “You two weren’t exactly subtle you know? I’m offended you thought I didn’t know!” She hoped to maybe make him laugh, or at least smile a little, but her attempt backfired.

“There’s more,” he looked down, as if he was afraid to meet her eyes. “Ahsoka, Padmé is pregnant.”

“Wait what-!?” 

She couldn’t help the shock that slipped out of her. She felt blind for not noticing before. She’d been so distracted on Mustafar that she hadn’t even realised- but come to think of it, the force had felt a little more... _full_ around Padmé back there, but she’d just brushed it off. She quickly regained her posture. “Master that’s- that’s amazing! Congrats!” Despite everything though, she genuinely was happy for Anakin. She could only imagine a little skyguy (or skygal?) running around. Anakin would be a good father. She knew that from the bottom of her heart.

He did smile a little at her blatant excitement, though it didn’t reach his eyes. He still seemed exhausted and... hollow. But they’d get through this. They always did. His smile was short lived though, and a guilt ridden frown soon took its place. “I don’t know if she’ll forgive me, Ahsoka. I did things that I shouldn’t have. Things you wouldn’t believe.” 

“Anakin, I don’t know what you did- but I do know that Padmé could never hate you.” 

“Well, maybe she should-!” He snapped, “And maybe you should too!”

Ahsoka ignored the way her body tensed at his sudden change in mood, “I don’t know what you did, master- but it wasn’t you. I know you. You could never do anything that would make her turn her back on you.”

He seemed ready to argue back at her, but stopped himself with a sigh. “If you knew what I’ve done, I doubt you’d say that.”

“We’ve all done things we’re not proud of.” She said softly, her mind going back to the clones- order 66- how she couldn’t save them. “But we keep living on, and we have the chance to become better.” She moved closer to place a hand on his shaking shoulder. “Stop beating yourself up. Whatever happened, it’s in the past alright? Things have been dark lately and I know it’s difficult to know who to trust right now, but you’ve made it this far for a reason- so whatever happens, we’ll get through it. Together.” 

This time, Anakin did smile for real. “Since when did you become the wise one?”

She smiled back at him, “I guess it’s just my master rubbing off on me.”

“Thank you, Ahsoka.” He said quietly. She could feel his gratitude through the force, and it warmed her. “Really, for everything. If you hadn’t come to find me- there’s no telling what might have happened.”

She smiled up at him. She’d gotten through to him. It had been a long day, but she’d finally found him. Anakin was back. “Anytime, you know I could never leave you behind.” She then smiled at him, which he returned. 

“I’ve missed you, Snips.” He said meaningfully. The old nickname brought a genuine smile to her face; happiness coursing through her for the first time in what felt like an eternity. They still had plenty they needed to figure out, but it seemed like things would turn out alright, after all.

“It’s good to have you back, Skyguy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you they’d be okay! :)  
> But our guys aren’t out of the clear just yet. Let’s just say something not so good is looming in the horizon...
> 
> From the bottom of my heart, thank you for reading so far, and may the force be with you, always <3


	3. Tatooine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin and Ahsoka look for a way off Tatooine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is late! I wish I had a good reason but honestly it’s because of animal crossing ;; I won’t let this happen again though!   
> Thanks again for all the support! I love you all <3
> 
> Also before I forget, I made a tumblr for my fanfics so you can come and yell at me over there! I’ll probably put up some fic recs over there too because I’ve read so much amazing stuff lately that needs more recognition :)  
> -> @lottiesoka

“You weren’t lying when you said this planet is the worst.” Ahsoka groaned as she trudged across the desert after Anakin and Artoo. The planet’s twin suns were beating down mercilessly above them right from the top of the sky and it felt like they’d been walking in search of civilisation for an eternity. 

After their teary eyed heart to heart in the middle of the desert, Anakin had suggested that they carry on walking. Because surely they couldn’t be too far from an outpost or a village... or something. And surely they’d be able to find a way off Tatooine if they just kept on going. Ahsoka wished she’d voiced her doubt then, because at this point they’d been walking for so long that there was no point in turning back.

Not that they’d be able to find a way back to the crashed ship anyway.

“Hang in there, Ahsoka, if we keep going we’ll find a way out of here eventually.”

“You said that like an hour ago.” She whined. “I can’t believe I let you lead the way, do you even know where we’re going?” 

“Of course I do! You doubt me far too much, my Young Padawan.”

“I’m seventeen, master.” She protested, as she treaded after him, trying her best to ignore the relentless burning heat coming from the suns above them.

In front of her, Anakin suddenly stopped moving, and Ahsoka only noticed because she ended up nearly walking into him.

“What’s going on? Why did you stop?” She frowned. Anakin was looking out into the horizon, his expression focused. 

“Quiet.” He whispered at her, she and Artoo both just looked up at him in utter confusion. Suddenly, he pulled them towards a boulder and he pushed her down into a crouching position next to him behind it.

“What are you doing?” She hissed at him. 

“Sand people.” He whispered back. “Right ahead.” He pointed across the boulder, and to her dismay he was right. There was what looked like an entire camp full of sand people right in front of them. “If they see us we’re in trouble.”

That wasn’t good. She’d heard him talking about Sand People before. According to Anakin, they were merciless savages who would capture and torture anyone for no reason other than for their own entertainment. He’d told her before that they’d taken someone close to him, and he hated them almost as much as he hated the very planet they came from. 

“Do you have my lightsaber?” He asked in a hurried whisper.

She shook her head sadly. “It’s with Rex. I would have brought it with me but we didn’t think-“ 

A conflicted look flashed across his face, and Ahsoka graced herself for a lecture of some sort, but after a moment he took a deep breath and his expression relaxed. “I understand. You probably did the right thing.” He smiled at her lightly to reassure her when her frown didn’t immediately lift. “Do you have yours?”

“Only one.” She sighed, her mind flashing back to Madalore- how she’d lost her saber in the first place. As a Jedi, she’d always been taught that her lightsabers were her life- when she’d lost her lightsaber as a Padawan she remembered the stress and fear, and the desperation to get it back. Even though she was no longer a Jedi, she felt particularly ashamed for losing this one. Anakin had taken care of them after she’d left, and she’d lost one of them without a second thought. 

To her surprise, he didn’t seem too disappointed that she’d lost her weapon. She supposed he had more important things on his mind anyway. He looked back towards the colony of sand people with a dark expression. “If you give me your saber, I can take care of them.” 

“No-!” The sand people, as dangerous as Anakain claimed they were weren’t doing anything bad. They had no reason to just attack them. Anakin was a Jedi, surely he wouldn’t attack these innocent creatures for no reason? “Can’t we just sneak around them?”

He frowned, “I’m not risking you getting hurt.”

“Well, I’m not letting you rush in there and kill them for no reason!”

“You don’t know what those _things_ are capable of.”

Ahsoka looked over the boulder in front of them to observe the camp. The sand people were still completely oblivious to their presence. She noticed that the camp was rather peaceful looking- they barely seemed to have any weapons at all. There was no reason why Anakin had the right to barge through the camp and kill them. They hadn’t done anything to them- and if they weren’t reckless, it would stay that way. “Nothing’s going to happen, Master.” 

Anakin still seemed quite tense but then he sighed, rubbing his hair in frustration. “Fine. We’ll do things your way.” He frowned as he looked away from the camp of sand people in front of them. “But we need to be really quiet, alright? Because if one of them notices us, all of them do. And there’s at least twenty of them standing outside the tents alone. They’ll all come running and then we won’t be getting out of here for a very long time. Maybe never.” 

His warning sent fear through her, but she decided to try not to let it bother her. So long as she followed his lead, they’d be fine. They’d made it this far after all. “I won’t make a sound.”

Slowly, she and Artoo followed Anakin as he snuck past the camp. Having the ability to use the force to help mask their presence made the task a lot easier, and getting past the sand people was far simpler than Anakin’s grave warning had made it out to be. 

“I don’t know why you ever doubted me, master.” Ahsoka found herself smirking at Anakin once they had made it successfully away from the camp without any struggle whatsoever. 

“You can’t blame me for being careful.” He said fervently. “The desert takes everything from you, and I’m not taking any chances.” 

Ahsoka nodded in understanding. They’d faced a lot of loss lately. She got that he didn’t want to lose anything else. 

She was just glad that she hadn’t lost him to the darkside.

They trekked through the desert some more, as a comforting silence fell between them. Ahsoka watched as the twin suns slowly got lower and lower in front of them. She wondered if they’d even make it off this godforsaken wasteland of a planet.

Eventually, the silence was broken by Artoo’s beeping.

“What’s up, buddy?” Ahsoka crouched down next to the droid to be at eye level.

“He says he sees something over there.” Anakin grinned as he looked over at where the droid was pointed. “It looks like an outpost, Ahsoka! I think we finally found our ticket out of here, c’mon!” 

She looked over, and to her joy she realised that Anakin was right. Running over to catch up with Anakin, they made their way over to the outpost together. Finally it seemed like things were starting to take a turn for the better.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

The outpost turned out to actually be a massive spaceport which Anakin quickly identified as Mos Eisley. “Stay close, Ahsoka.” He warned, “This place is brimming with shady figures so keep your guard up, alright?” 

She nodded afirmingly as she walked by his side through the space port. It was unbelievably crowded, with people of all species bustling around, selling things and just going about their days. She begun to think it couldn’t be that bad, everyone seemed to be keeping to themselves pretty much.

But she quickly understood what Anakin meant when he said the place was full of shady figures when a male rodian placed a hand on her shoulder.

Before she even had the chance to react, she felt Anakin’s strong arms grip her tightly and pull her towards him. He gave the rodian such a vicious glare that it even made Ahsoka feel frightened. It almost felt like he was glaring straight into the Rodian’s very soul- her old master’s eyes were steely and cold. She immediately looked away when she realised with horror that they had a tinge of yellow, trying to pretend like she wasn’t more afraid of him than anything else on this spaceport. After all, it was Anakin, he wouldn’t hurt her. 

She was only afraid of how he would hurt anyone who did.

The rodian seemed to stumble on his words. Ahsoka didn’t blame him- Anakin could be scary. He was scaring _her_ and she wasn’t even on the receiving end of... this. “I-I didn’t mean no bad, I swear, I-I was just trying to sell-“

Anakin cut him off harshly, his voice laced with venom, “Whatever you’re selling, we don’t want it. Now get away from here before I make you.”

The Rodian scampered off and disappeared into the crowds before Anakin had the chance to do anything more dangerous. 

Ahsoka frowned as she slipped out of his protective grasp and turned around to face him. She refused to look up to his eyes, afraid that they would still be that faint yellow colour she had seen before.

_Calm down, Ahsoka. This is Anakin. He won’t hurt you._

“What was that for?” She didn’t mean to snap at him, but she was a little irked in all honesty. She could easily take care of herself- he knew that! If that rodian had tried anything- which he wasn’t even going to- she’d have been able to sort it out herself. He’d trained her, for Kriff’s sake!

“I told you this place is dangerous-! You can’t trust anybody here.”

“He wasn’t doing anything wrong though!” She argued back, “You can’t just treat people like that!” First his eagerness to exterminate the sand people, and now this. And that wasn’t even mentioning the events on a Mustafar, and force knows what had happened before that. Something was definitely wrong with Anakin, and Ahsoka hated how scared it made her.

To her gratitude, he didn’t try and argue with her. Which was very un-Anakin-like. But then, so was the way he had just acted. “I’m sorry, Ahsoka. I don’t know what came over me, it just- slipped out.” 

“I know. It’s just I can take care of myself, you know? And when you go and act like that it almost feels like you don’t trust me or something.”

“I do trust you, Snips! You’re one of the only people I _can_ trust at the moment.” He sighed, “I’m just stressed. So much has happened and we’re stuck on just about my least favourite planet in the galaxy.” 

“I understand.” She said a little more gently. He was right- and she didn’t exactly want to be stranded either. She wanted to get back to Rex as soon as possible. She quickly surveyed the area and noticed what looked like a shipyard in front of them. _perfect._ That would be their ticket out of there. She was about to nudge Anakin to let him know when she was interrupted by her stomach gargling loudly.

Kriff, she’d forgotten how hungry she was. When was the last time she’d eaten?

Anakin seemed to wonder that too because he gave her a look, “When was the last time you ate?”

“Uhh..” She honestly couldn’t remember. She’d been so distracted with everything going on... she probably hadn’t eaten anything since that ration bar she’d had on the way to meet Anakin and Obi-wan before mandolore. That was a few days ago now.

“Really, Snips?” He chided tiredly.

“Hey, it’s not my fault! I’ve been busy!”

“That’s no excuse.” He glared before reaching into a pocket and slipping a handful of credits into her hand. “Here, there’s a Cantina over there.” He pointed at a domed building not far away from them. “You go find something to eat and I’ll get us a ship.”

She tried to protest, but he just shook his head, interrupting her. “This is non-negotiable, I’m not having you pass out or something. Especially not out here.”

“But how exactly do you plan on getting a ship?” She doubted they had enough credits between them, especially since he’d given so many to her.

Anakin seemed like he already had a plan, but he didn’t elaborate on it. “Just leave that to me.” She only hoped that he didn’t plan on using... unconventional.. methods. No, she had to trust in him. Anakin wouldn’t do anything bad. He wouldn’t. “Droids aren’t welcome in many places round here, so I’ll bring Artoo with me. I’ll come find you once we’ve got a way out of here, alright?” 

Before she turned around to head off in the direction of the cantina, Anakin shrugged off his Jedi robes and draped them over her. Ahsoka gave him a look; this didn’t really feel necessary. He just mumbled something along the lines of “Better safe than sorry.” And then stated walking through the bustling spaceport with Artoo.

Something about his plan just didn’t sit right with her, but Ahsoka decided to give in and just hope that Anakin wasn’t going to end up hurting anyone. There was definitely something he wasn’t telling her though; she only hoped that eventually he would be honest and tell her whatever it was. Surely he knew that whatever he’d done couldn’t possibly change her opinion of him?

Right?

_______________________________________________________________________________________

It didn’t take long for Anakin to appear at the Cantina with a rather smug look on his face. 

Ahsoka had found a table that was tucked away near the back of the crowded building and was munching on a jogan fruitcake when he came and sat next to her. “That was fast, did you manage to get a ship?” She asked between mouthfuls.

“Of course,” he nodded, “So as soon as you’re done here we can head out.”

He didn’t mention how he’d gotten the ship, and Ahsoka decided that she didn’t want to ask. She changed the subject instead. “Aren’t you hungry?”

“Oh no, unlike you I actually remembered to eat before we ended up here.” Ahsoka tried not to roll her eyes at his tone. Anakin then chucked- even if it did sound a little more laboured than usual, “Rex will be sad he missed out, though. You know how much he loves jogan fruit.”

Oh Kriff, Rex!

She’d completely forgotten that she turned off her comlink; so distracted by the whole Anakin situation that she’d completely forgotten to turn it back on again. Rex had been trying to contact her a while ago. She only hoped it hadn’t been urgent.

The very second she turned her comlink back on, they were greeted by a very tired and concerned looking Rex.

“Commander! Thank the stars, I was this close to-“ his eyes drifted to Anakin sitting next to her, “General?”

“I’m glad you’re alright, Rex.” Anakin said meaningfully, but Ahsoka didn’t miss the guilt that seemed to flash across his expression for a moment. She’d ask him about it later.

“I’m glad you’re alright too, sir.” Rex smiled heartfully, “I knew the commander here would get through to you.” He grinned to Ahsoka, and she grinned back. Rex had been worried, but he’d trusted her and believed in her, and that meant everything.

“I’m so sorry, Rex.” Anakin looked ashamed, but Rex wasn’t having any of it.

“Nonsense, the past is in the past. We couldn’t have known what was going to happen and, maybe we should have listened to Fives after all, but we couldn’t have known that. I don’t blame you for anything that happened, General. Just like I don’t blame any of my brothers.” Rex still seemed stiff and uneasy about what the Clones had been made to do, and the bags under his eyes only seemed to prove that. Ahsoka hoped that they’d be able to help the rest of the surviving clones in whatever way they could. They at least owed it to them to try. If she had been able to remove Rex’s chip, then what was there to stop them from removing the chips from other clones too? She only hoped they’d get the chance- that it wasn’t too late.

Anakin still seemed guilty, and almost distant- just like he had since he had woken; but neither Ahsoka nor Rex mentioned it. Ahsoka knew they were all still shaken up and uncertain after what had happened over the past few days. She still had a lot to talk to Anakin about- and so much to tell him; but she didn’t plan on leaving him any time soon. They didn’t have to rush into things. 

“Did you make it to Polis Messa alright?” She asked Rex, who nodded in confirmation.

“I commend you earlier just to let you know, and well, I’ve, uh,” he scratched the back of his neck bashfully, “I’ve actually got some news for you General Skywalker. Good news of course. Will you two be able to make it over here?”

“Of course,” confirmed Ahsoka, “We’ll leave as soon as we’re done here.”

Anakin was quick to ask “Is- uh, is Padmé feeling alright?”

“Well actually, the news I mentioned it’s ah, regarding her.”

“Did something happen?” Anakin swore under his breath, quickly getting to his feet, “We’ll be there immediately Rex.”

“It’s nothing bad, General don’t worry.” Rex waved his hands reassuringly, “But it’s just not my place to tell you what happened. I think you should see for yourself.”

Ahsoka glanced over to Anakin who still seemed stressed out of his mind as he slowly sat back down next to her. Of course he was worried, he was going to be a father soon- but the amount of guilt and stress she felt coming off him just didn’t feel natural. There was definitely something he hadn’t told her. Rex hadn’t done much to ease Anakin’s nerves, but Ahsoka hoped that once they got to Polis Messa and he was able to see for himself that Padmé was alright, it would be okay again.

“Is she nearby? Can I talk to her?” Anakin wanted to know.

“I’m afraid she’s asleep, but General Kenobi is here now if you need to-“

“No.” Anakin said firmly, cutting off the Clone. “It’s alright, Rex. We’ll see you soon.” Ahsoka pretended not to notice how Anakin’s exterior got a lot colder at the mention of her grandmaster. Come to think of it, she still didn’t know exactly what had happened on Mustafar- only pieced little bits together. She wondered if Anakin would tell her if she asked. She wondered if she even wanted to know.

“Alright then.” Rex nodded, not questioning Anakin’s sudden change in demeanour. He looked over to Ahsoka again with a lighter expression. “Be careful.”

“Always, Rex.” She smiled at him fondly. He didn’t need to know that she’d crashed a ship only hours ago.

Rex rolled his eyes. Before waving goodbye to both of them. When his hologram disappeared, Anakin was up on his feet again and ready to go. “C’mon, Ahsoka, lets get off this dump once and for all.”

She smirked as she got up to follow him to their new ship. “I’m right behind you, Master.” She slammed some credits onto the table and followed him out the door.

She was more than happy to get off Tatooine. That jogan fruitcake was only mediocre at best.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Their new ship wasn’t exactly first class, and it looked like it would fall apart any second. Not to mention, the ramp made a really obnoxious creaking noise when it opened. Nethertheless, they were both more than ready to get off the planet, and Anakin said that they’d probably survive the journey since Poliss Messa wasn’t too far away. Thank the force.

The interior was a little bigger than the ship Ahsoka had crashed onto the planet, and the extra breathing room definitely helped. Not having to squeeze into the cockpit next to Anakin was a huge step up. With all three of them in the front of the ship and Anakin piloting- he said he didn’t trust Ahsoka not to crash again, but really she knew he was just enthusiastic to fly away into his wife’s arms as soon as humanly possible; they were ready to leave the dusty desert planet for good.

Anakin punched in the coordinates to Polis Messa at such a fast speed that Ahsoka thought he would end up breaking the kriffing thing before they even got off Tatooine. But she understood that he was desperate to get out of there and talk to Padmé. She hoped he’d talk to Obi-Wan as well, because there was definitely some bad blood between them that hadn’t been there before.

The flight was only supposed to take a few hours at most, and Ahsoka had fully intended to stay awake the whole time and do a little more catching up with Anakin, but she drifted off to sleep after they had barely even left Tatooine’s atmosphere. 

All the excitement of finding a new ship had distracted her from how exhausted she was. She wanted to stay awake, but truthfully she was grateful for the opportunity to actually get some shuteye.

She fell asleep with Anakin and Artoo at her side, watching the galaxy fly by, and for the first time in days, she almost felt at peace.

It was nice.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

“Snips. Pssst, Snips, wake up.”

Ahsoka opened her eyes to find Anakin with his hands on her shoulders trying to shake her awake. 

“Master? Ugh, what’s- what’s going on?” She rubbed her tired eyes. “Are we there already? Kriff, how long had she been asleep for?

“Not quite,” Anakin sighed. “We’ve run into some trouble.” 

Ahsoka frowned. “What kind of trouble? What did you _do?_ ”

“I didn’t do anything!” He insisted. But then with Anakin’s tendency to get into trouble, she wondered how true that actually was. “I think we’re being followed.”

That probably wasn’t good. “Followed? By who?”

“I don’t know.” He grimaced, “But I’ve been trying to shake them off for so long now, and they won’t back off.” She saw his hands grip the controls tensly as he continued. “I don’t think they’re friendly, Ahsoka. I’m almost certain they’re bounty hunters.” his voice trailed off as if he was afraid to even continue.

“Bounty hunters?” She asked quietly. “Do you think they’re looking for surviving Jedi?”

He nodded restlessly, “But it’s more than that, Ahsoka. I think-“ he took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. 

Ahsoka didn’t want to watch again as Anakin stressed himself out and panicked. “Tell me later.” She said sympathetically. “Right now we have to get to the bottom of whatever this is.”

“We can’t go to Polis Messa.” He said decisively. “If they are following us, which I’m almost certain they are, we’ll just lead them right to the one place we don’t want them to be.”

“So we take a detour,” Ahsoka suggested, “Lure them to a different planet and take them out when they least expect it.”

“I like the way you think, Snips.” He grinned.

“I learn from the best.” She smirked back at him. If she forgot all the nightmares that they’d both faced over the past few days, it was almost like old times.

Anakin’s grip tightened on the controls as he swerved the ship around to the nearest planet. Maybe they were being reckless, charging into the unknown like this- but they’d survived this far. A bunch of bounty hunters wouldn’t be their downfall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens!   
> I hope you’re enjoying the story so far, your support means the world :)
> 
> Tumblr: lottiesoka <33


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